HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
+ 1 further entry on record
A 1756 sea captain's house turned restaurant and pub on the Mystic River, where staff and guests describe a child's laughter on the second-floor stairs.
32 Water Street, Mystic, CT 06355
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Full-service restaurant and pub. Pub food and dining-room entrees; no admission fee. Reservations recommended for the dining room.
Access
Limited Access
Multi-level 18th-century building; the upstairs dining room is reached by a narrow original staircase.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1756 · One of the oldest buildings in downtown Mystic · Built in 1756 by Revolutionary-era sea captain Daniel Packer · Site of an early rope-ferry crossing of the Mystic River · Held by the Packer family and descendants until the late 1970s
Daniel Packer purchased the parcel along Water Street on the west bank of the Mystic River in 1754 and completed his house in 1756. Packer earned the title of captain through his maritime business and Revolutionary-era service, sailing square-rigged ships. In the era before bridges spanned the river at Mystic, he operated a rope ferry that carried travelers, horses, and stagecoaches across the water.
Through the late 1700s the house served as a waystation for travelers on the road between New York and Boston, who would stop for a meal and a bed before crossing the river the next morning. Packer is said to have entertained guests with accounts of his time at sea. He lived in the house with his family, and after his death the property remained with his descendants, the Keeler family, into the late 1970s.
In 1979 the first owners from outside the Packer line bought the building and began a multi-year restoration, reopening it as a restaurant with a pub on the lower level and a dining room upstairs. The Inne is recognized as one of the oldest buildings in downtown Mystic and remains in operation at 32 Water Street.
Sources
The best-known story at the Captain Daniel Packer Inne concerns a child the staff call Ada. In local accounts she was a young relative of the Packer family who died of scarlet fever in a bedroom on the second floor during the 1800s. Reports describe her as a presence rather than a frightening one: a child's laughter, the impression of a girl running between rooms, and figures seen waving from an upstairs window.
Staff describe the second-floor staircase and the restrooms as the spots where she is most often noticed, and the restaurant named a cocktail 'Ada's Choice' after her. Some accounts also report a captain's figure attributed to Packer himself, along with mugs and glasses moving on the bar and doors opening and closing on their own.
The reports have been documented beyond the Inne's own telling. Author Courtney McInvale included the building in her book 'Haunted Mystic,' and Fox 61 reported on the activity during coverage of local ghost tours; the Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce has also written up Ada's story. The specifics of Ada's family connection and death are drawn from local tradition rather than a single documented record, but the pattern of reports has been consistent across independent retellings.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Lunch or dinner in the c.1756 Captain Daniel Packer Inne, with a casual pub on the lower level and a dining room upstairs. The building's age and waterfront setting are part of the draw, and staff are accustomed to questions about the resident child spirit, Ada, including a cocktail named in her honor.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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